Young Women’s Leadership School
Chicago, Illinois
Ms. Natalie Moore, 7th Grade
Science and Life Issues from SEPUP

About the Class:

Science and Life Issues (SALI) is an issue-oriented year-long life science course for the middle school. It is divided into seven units: Studying People Scientifically, Body Works, Micro Life, Genetics, Ecology, Evolution, and Scientific Tools. SALI students conduct experiments, collect and analyze data, create models, and read and analyze information.

Student Questions:

1. What do you miss the most when you're on an expedition?
   
   MILLER: The thing we miss the most on expeditions is family and friends. It is hard to be away from your loved ones for so long, and we all miss them dearly. We love being out in the field, and we are always excited to go exploring for dinosaurs and crocodiles, but we are always glad to come home in the end!
   
   
2. What kinds of things do you study in college to prepare for a career as a paleontologist?
   
   GRAY: The most important subjects to study in college are geology and biology. Paleontology is really a mix of the two, so one must be proficient in both to really understand the ancient landscapes and ecologies that we study.
   
   
3. How do you tell how long ago a dinosaur lived?
   
   MILLER: Dating a dinosaur is tricky because you can’t date the actual dinosaur bones. Instead, you must date the rocks that are around them. There are two main kinds of rocks that we deal with. One kind is volcanic and the other is sedimentary (rocks left over by rivers and lakes). It is only possible to date the volcanic rocks, which is unfortunate because all dinosaurs are found in sedimentary rocks. However, if there are two sets of volcanic rocks surrounding the sedimentary rocks we find fossils in, we know that the age is between the ages of the volcanic rocks. That is one way that we do it!
   
   
4. How do you keep the dinosaur bones organized and protected from when you dig them up to when you study them and put them together?
   
   MILLER: We organize them by using a numbering system where we label each bone and record it in a logbook. Most of the bones that we collect are protected by burlap and plaster jackets that allow us to ship them back to the US for preparation (cleaning and reconstruction), but we’re able to protect some with only paper towels and fiber tape.
   
   
5. Parent Question:
   How do the people of Niger contribute to your expedition?
   
   SERENO: First, there are Nigeriennes on our team -- some are colleagues, others are guards. Second, we often have Nigeriennes take us to places where they have seen bones. Third, we often depend entirely on Nigeriennes to help us fix things or find things that we need, like a missing bolt or car part.